DOVER -- Thousands turned out for the 28th annual Dover Apple Harvest Day for what organizers are calling the biggest year yet for the event.“It’s a great day,” Mayor Dean Trefethen said as he took in the Mallet Brothers Band, one of the main music acts entertaining the crowd in the heart of downtown.Trefethen took the first bite of an apple during the opening ceremonies of Apple Harvest Day and said he loved the way entertainment was spread out through the city.Local musician Tim McCoy, visiting Apple Harvest fest with his mother, Lois, said the big stages this year were entertaining, and made him think about performing at the event next year.“It’s just fantastic,” he said.Bobbing for apples nearby at Henry Law Park, Avery, 2, and her brother Reilly, 5, were enjoying the event for the first time.The Rollinsford natives, attending with their mother, Tia Pass, were taking in whatever the day had to offer.“It’s well worth it, Pass said. “We’ve had a fantastic time.”“I’m so glad my friends made me come out to see what’s here,” Sarah Laherty said.She was new to the Garrison City, but not new to festivals. Having grown up in a small town in Iowa she celebrates each and every holiday, she said.Laherty brought her friend’s daughter, Mikisha Hartley, 9, who was excited to have her face painted like a tiger.“I don’t even like apples,” Mikisha said.Liking apples was not a prerequisite for having a great time at the festival, but it did help some.“Well I bought a bushel,” Daniel Backowies said, who waits every year until Apple Harvest Day to make apple crisp for his friends and family.“I grew up in Dover and I love this stuff. I looked forward to it every year,” he said.Many Dover natives usher in the fall season with the festival, and look forward to the apples.But this year apples were hard to come by,” said Molly Hodgson-Smith, executive director of the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce.“It’s been a bit of a challenge,” Hodgson-Smith said.She said some of the orchards normally used as suppliers for the event struggled with their crop this apple season. She also said some of the orchards hosted their own harvest day, therefore making themselves unable to participate.There were still enough for people to enjoy. The caramel covered apples were a main attraction on Main Street. So were other kinds of apples and apple products.“She’s here to eat the different apples of the season,” Heather Montgomery, of Dover, said about her daughter Abigail.She and her husband Jeremy moved to Dover a few years ago.“We love that the weather is nice and the events are family friendly,” Montgomery said.